Machine for cleaning erasers.



No. 874,400. I PATENTED DEC. 24, 1907 v G. G. GREENE. MACHINE FOR CLEANING ERASERS.

APPLICATION FILED MAN. 7, 1907.

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GEORGE GOULD GREENE, OF MOORHEAD, MINNESOTA.

MACHINE FOR CLEANING ERASERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 24:, 1907.

Application filed March 7. 1907- Serial No. 361,157-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEoEsE GoULn GREENE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Moorhead, in the county of Clay and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ma chines for Cleaning Erasers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its object to provide a simple and efficient device for cleaning black board erasers, and especially adapted for use in connection with schools for the purpose stated. I

To the above ends the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

The improved machine or device is illustrated in the accomp anying'drawings, wherein like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a view in side elevation, showing the improved machine. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine, with some parts removed; and Fig. 3 is a view in elevation, with one of the side plates of the machine removed from working position.

The case of the machine is made up of side plates 1, a front end plate 2 and top plates 3 and 4, which parts may be of wood, metal or any other suitable material. The bottom plate of the machine is preferably afforded by a wooden board 5 rigidly secured to the sides 1. Between the lower end of the end plate 2 and the underlying end of the bottom card 5 is an opening 6 through which the erasers 7 maybe introduced into the case of the machine. In this opening 6 is a swinging gate 8, preferably of sheet metal, which is hinged at its upper end to the lower end plate 2, as shown, at 9. This gate 8 preferabl extends entirely across the opening 6 and is of such length that when it engages with the upper padded face of an eraser, the

back of which is resting on the bottom board 5, it will close the said opening16, thus preventing the escape of dust at t is point and will have a ratchet like action on said eraser which will prevent the same from being withdrawn backward through the said opening 6 after it has once been inserted through said opening. The other or delivery end of the case 1 is left open beyond the delivery end of the bottom board 5.

Mounted to rotate within the casing of the machine is a drum 10, the shaft 11 of which is journaled in the sides 1 thereof, and, as shown, is provided at one end with a pulley 11 over which runs a power driven belt 12. Attached at one end to the drum 10 is a plurality of flexible flat straps 13, preferably of leather, which serve as beaters for pounding the padded faces of the erasers and which also serve as fan blades to produce a forced circulation of air. These .straps 13 are nearly as wide as the space between the sides 1 of the case, and they are so arranged that under rotation of the drum 10 in the direction of the arrow marked on Fig. 3, they will be brought -into succession with a beating action upon the padded faces of the erasers and will thus loosen up all of the chalk dust from the erasers and, furthermore, will produce a blast which will blow the loosened dust out at the open delivery end of the case.

It will also be understood that the direction of the rotation of the drum is such that the frictional engagement of the straps with the erasers will tend to force the same backward or in the direction from which they are inserted into the casing. If the straps should be reversely mounted and the drum rotated in a reverse direction from that indicated the erasers would be shot through the machine under the pounding action of the beater straps and, hence, would be ejected before they were cleaned.

The numeral 14 indicates a plate, preferably of sheet metal, which, as shown, is secured to the sides 1 of the case by a transverse rod 15. This plate 14 acts as a shield to prevent the loosened chalk dust from settling on the padded faces of the erasers after they have been forced. beyond the reach of the beater straps 13.

The numeral 16 indicates guide rods which are attached at their forward ends to the sides 1 of the case, and at their rear ends are provided with out-turned portions 17 that work freely in perforations 18 in the sides of the said case. These guide rods 16 are adapted to engage the grooved sides of theerasers and thus prevent the same from jumping around or bouncin from the bottom board 5 While they are eing beaten by. the straps 13.

When the machine is in operation the erasers are-forced, one after another, into the tation of said drum serve to casing and passed to the beater, and after In actual practice, the machine above described was driven by means of a hand crank geared to the drum 10, and in operation it Was found to be extremely efficient for the purposes had in view.

As is obvious, the machine is of small cost.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine for cleaning erasers, the combination with a casing having laterally spaced sides, a bottom board, an inlet passa e and an outlet passage for the erasers, of a rum mounted within said casing, a plurality of beater straps attached to said drum at one end, and means for rotating said drum, and which beater straps are approximately as wide as the distance between the laterally spaced sides of the said casin and under roloosen the dust from said erasers and to produce a blast in a direction-to deliver the dust out throu h the discharge opening of said casing, su stantially as described.

2. The combination with a casing having laterally spaced sides, a bottom board, an inlet passage and an outlet passage, of a yieldingly mounted gate in said inlet passage operative to close the gate opening and to engage the erasers and to prevent backward movement thereof, a drum mounted in said casin means for rotating said drum, and a plura ity of beater straps attached to said drum at one end and operative under rotation of said drum to loosen the dust from said erasers, and to produce a blast in a direction to carry the loosened dust out through the discharge opening of said casing, substantially as described.

3. In a machine for cleaning erasers, the combination with a casing having laterally spaced sides, a bottom board, an inlet passage and an outlet passage for the erasers, of a rotary drum mounted in said casing, a plurality of beater straps attached to said drum at one end and operative under rotation of said drum to loosen the dust from said erasers and to produce a blast in a direction to carry the loosened dust out through the discharge opening of said casin and laterally spaced guide rods engagea le with the sides of the erasers for preventing jumping thereof under the beating action of said heater straps, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

GEORGE GOULD GREENE.

Witnesses:

H. M. STANFORD, J. BROHAUGH. 

